The Sun. — London, England, 1838-03-21 00:00:00

like those pilots of whom many had been seen at different seasons and on both sides of the House, by their policy to raise storms which no other men had been able to quell? The sentimets of that great man—he need not say that he alluded to William Pitt--on the debate of Mr. Whitbread's Motion, 1791, were as follows:—" No temporary occasion should force a British subject to part with the last shilling of his little capital, and compel him to descend to a state of wretchedness from which he might never recover, merely that be might be entitl e d t o rece i ve a casual supply." He would again repeat, that these new workhouses were prisons in their confinement—prisons in their discipline—prisons in their privations —worse than prisons in the quantity and quality of their food—and yet they were told by a Noble Lord (Hard- Rieke) the Lord Lieutenant of the county of Cambridge, whom he wished were present on this occasion—they were told by that Noble Earl that the term prison was most im properly applied, and that they ought to have been termed asylums for the poor. The Noble Earl might just as well have said that Newgate and the hulks were asylums for eir minals. On this point he (Earl Stanhope) had authority— the authority of the present Viceroy of Suffolk—not the Lord Lieutenant of the county, but the present Viceroy— the Assistant Poor-law Commissioner, Dr. Kay.—( L aug h_ ter. ) That gentleman said, " It is our intention to make these workhouses as much like prisons as possible, and as uncom fortable as possible ;" and most strictly had that intention been carried into effect. Everybody knew that the greatest aver sion existed towards these workhouses, and that they were considered as the last and melancholy refuge to which the labourer might ultimately be reduced by the extremity of his distress and destitution, and this, he would contend, was a sufficient answer to all those misrepresentations which were current, that they encouraged idleness, and were places of luxurious ease. They had heard of cruelty practised in bar barous ages and in remote and uncivilised countries ; but he should wish to know in what period of history, ancient or modern, sacred or profane—in what region of the earth, how ever barbarous or savage—the diabolical doctrine was ever 'before adopted and reduced to practice, that poverty was to The treated as a crime ? Why were those to be thus treated wile were disabled by the dispensation of Providence, and the widows and orp h an; who, hav i ng l ost t h e i r h us b an d s or f a th ers , had__ becom e d est i tute and incapable of prqv i d i ng f or t h emse l ves ? 1 - 1 e was ashamed for the honour of his country that he was obliged to ask the question. He should feel it impossible to argue a matter which of itself was so repugnant to the common sense and feelings of the country ; and here he must be allowed to quote the opinion of the late Lord Eldon—a name which he could never pronounce without the utmost veneration for his profound learning, for his spotless integrity—( Hear)—and withal, the deepest grief for his irreparable loss. The opinion frequently expressed by that Noble and Learned Lord, as it was known to a Noble Baron whom he saw in the House, and to himself, was, " This is the most infamous Bill that ever wee enacted in a Christian country"—( Hear)—a sentiment which deserved to be written, not only in the hearts of their Lordships, but of the whole country, and he knew, if the life of his Noble and Venerable Friend had been spared—if it had pleased Providence to restore to him even a small portion of leis bodily strength—there was nothing on this earth which he so earnestly wished as to appear again in that House, and with that authority with which he always addressed the House, to advocate the cause of the poor and wretched.—( Hear.) With respect to the increase of crime the Noble Duke on the cross benches (Richmond) wished to limit it to one division of the County of Sussex ; but he (Earl Stanhope) could assure the Noble Duke that the increase was general throughout the county, and the fact was admitted by the Home Department. The cause was, that the imprisonment in the workhouse was worse than the imprisonment in a goal. He would call upon their Lordship; to respect the rights of the labouring classes ; but if this were not done the inevitable result would be, and he stated it with pain and sorrow, the partition of property, which when it was originally propounded at the period of the French Revolution was considered so wild and frantic a chimera. He tad thought it his duty to state to their Lordships the dangers with which they were menaced. It was not too late to return, bat it would be when the hurricane arose which would level to the ground all the existing institutions of the country, and spread anarchy and rebellion in every district. The Noble Earl, in conclusion, would address to them the words used to to prisoners at the bar, " God grant you a good deliverance ;" and then moved "for a statement of the petitions presented to this House during the last Session of Parliament on the sub ject of the Act entitled An Act for the amendment and bet ter administration of the laws relating to the poor in England and Wales,' specifying the number of signatures to each, the description of the persons from whom each petition proceeded, whether owners or occupiers of land, ratepayers, inhabitants, guardians, or others, and whether they were or were not as sembled at a public meeting held for the purpose of petition ing, the place or places from which each petition proceeded, and the prayer of each petition, whether for the repeal of the said Act, or for its amendment, or for its continuance, or for what other purpose." Lord B RO U G HAM said that the charges brought forward by a Right Rev. Prelate the other night were more specific than those which the Noble Earl brought forward, and having piedged himself to answer them he should do so, at the same time he could not help observing that they were selected with skilfu; felicity to suit the occasions they were intended to an swer, being introduced at the time when men were not pre pared to meet them. When, however, men came forward Prepared to meet and repel those charges, what was done ? Zbl, they dealt in generalities, and left nothing tangible to Y hold of in fact, stated no one circumstance which °°s l :d be either met or repelled.--( Hear, hear.) When he entered public life he was one of those who lamented the state of gross ignorance in which the poor, the working classes, had been so long involved, and whose unremitting endeavours were to improve their condition, both physically, Morally, and religiously. At first their efforts were vain, and s ome of the best friends of the poor doubted very much Whether their attempts were not productive of more harm than good. Every step they took they were met by the de znoralising and depaupering effects of the system of poor laws tflen in existence. To the abuses of the system the friends of the poor directed their attention, and he was one of those who, in 1817 and 1818, endeavoured to ascertain its defects, with a view to the eradication of the bad and the retention of the good. In 1832 a Committee of Inquiry was agreed to on the subject. That inquiry was prosecuted with this view, and it was with this view that the measure in question was ultimately carried through Parliament.—( Hear, hear, hear.) If, instead °f being a benefit to the poor, the measure inflicted misery on them —if, instead of promoting peace, it had excited rebellion -if the new system were incomparably worse than the old— then he would admit fully and frankly that great and mighty had been the failure of its promoters—that their legislative and administrative labours had been in vain. But was this the e ase, or could it be said that the measure had not been suc cessful? He cared nothing about big words, or where they Were used, or whether they were employed sparingly or eco- I m on mically ; but this he would say, that, regardless of vitupera ti, without proof to that effect he would not believe there Were grounds for the complaints that the New Poor Law Act Was a failure—that it did not tend to raise the character as well 4 3 to increase the comforts of the poor. It was not his inten tion to follow the Noble Earl throughout his speech, and with respect to one-half of it he did not hesitate to assert that it would do just as well for the preamble of a speech on any other s u bj ect as on that o f t h e N ew P oor -l aw A men d me nt a rt•—( A laugh.) It reminded him of the two prefaces of :s.llust, one t o t h e hi s t or y o f a six weeks' conspiracy, and the her t o t h at of a two months ' war, b ut b ot h so per f ect l y ge neral th a t t h ey would do j ust as we ll f or a wor k o f an y o th e r kind, or on any other subject, as those to which they were pre -I,_°l,•—( A laugh.) Then came the matter which the Noble had more immediately in hand. lie had expected that t s us Nobl e Earl mould have brought forward charges so de npt.sed th at t h ey could either be fairly met or at all events ex plained away; but h a d h e d one so ? N ow , w hat had the Noble E ar l d one ? W hy, i nstead of spec i f i c c h arges, h e on l y tr eated thei r L or d s hi ps to t h e part o f a ser i es o f di scourses or le ctures--lectures which enabled him to appear in the double e , a !P r aeity of lecturer an d f oun d er . —( A l aug h.) Th e N o bl e I never went so far as to say that this was an illegal Act._(" Hear, hear," from Earl Stanhope.) Now, he understood what a bad, a criminal, an oppressive Act Was, and had done his best on many occasions to resist such Acts —he understood, too, what an Unconstitutional Act was. It was an Act contrary to the spirit of all other Acts—opposed to the principles of the Consti tution—but an illegal Act was, he must candidly acknow ledge, a matter that passed his comprehension. A law might be bad, but surely that which was law could not be illegal, and, consequently, as the New Poor Law Act, without refer ence to the question whether it was good or bad, was law, the Noble Earl had nothing to complain of on the score of its legality.—( A laugh.) He (Lord Brougham)hoped that he should he able to satisfy their Lordships that there was nothing tyrannical or oppressive—that there was nothing either novel, Actor unheard-of—in the powers conferred by this Act. He could point out fifty other Acts which gave much sore extensive powers to Commissioners, and as instances of this kind he might mention the Oxford Act, as well as the Acts relating to the parishes of St. And r e w ' s, Holborn , and St. L eonar d' s, Sh ore ditch, in every one of which not only were larger powers given to the Commissioners, but they were a ppointed, not for a term of years, but for the whole term of their natural lives. _ Earl STANHOPE—But these Commission ers were to be appointed by the rate-payers. ra Lord BROUGHAM—Yes ; •but though chosen b y the Du the Nobl e Earl forget (the Noble and Learned Lord con uel) that the Boa r d s o f Guardians under this Act were Welted by the rate-payers? The Poor-law Commissioners sec , e not appoint e d f or lif e , b u t f o r five years only ; and con sequently, unless the Act were renewed in another y e ar, their ! , s would cease. N ot hi ne, t h ere f ore , cou ld b e less hide :Zin_s6.ent than the position of these Commissioners. The Com csss ,l u oners, it should be recollected, were answerable for their P 7 i. a et, not only to the Crown by whom they had been ap- E o u ed, but also to Parliament and the public. And the t sre a s r ds of Guardians were chosen by persons who had an in bo;_t in the proper management of the parochial funds. The sers co . Th e nseuentl vestd eithe in the Commissioners or in B oards of Guard ans e r by this Act, were exercised under abuse r control ; and, therefore, sufficient guarantee against f or was provided. If there had been any just grounds tabsetrcaoim i l t d f aints which the Noble Earl had urged, there abua ceedine of pro s@ straightforward, manly, coostitutional, and . legal mode open to him. He might state the instances of si c) , e that IQ occurred whether on the part of the Commis eie,:rs, the Boards of , Guardians, the Assistant Commis corn 8 , or the Relieving Officers, and then have moved for a yen oath of Inquiry, before which witnesses could be heard oath for and against the charges. Now, with respect to ekes Precedented powers (as they were called) which the „ ee gae, all hecould •ae that the manner in which they eere exercised say ta l l o d vve_ a.: ! t: was open to the country, patent to Parliament, es which v‘s,upervi given by the Oxford Act ? That Act enabled the parties not only to take up beggars, but also to take up distressed persons. Nay, it went farther, and said that they might be kept at work until they had reimbursed the pai ish all these expences, or, in default, be sent to the House of Correction, and there put to hard labour for a period of 30 days. This was not all—imprisonment was too moderate a punishment ; and, therefore, a power was given by it to whip the parties three times during the period, or every ten days. The Poor Law Amendment Act contained no such power, and vet it was said that its provisions were unprece dented. It was stated, to be sure, that obliging able bodied men to take pot-luck in the workhouse was an unheard of thing ; but he asked whether it was at all compatible with the powers given by the Oxford Act. By the Oxford Act not only were the authorities empowered to take up beggars, but they were required to search for distressed persons, to break open their doors, as if poverty was a quasi crime, and compel them to go into the workhouse.—( Hear, hear.) Under the Gilbert Act, passed, he believed, in 1782, Mr. Hall, an Assistant Commissioner, on going into a workhouse, found the paupers walking about in fetters, and, on inquiry, was told they were treated as felons, because it was necessary to pre vent their breaking bounds and running away. Nothing of this kind could happen under the present law ; and if the Gilbert Act permitted such proceedings, could it, he asked, be said that the powers of the Poor-law Amendment Act were unprecedented? He (Lord Brougham) contended that there was not a single harsh or oppressive power given by it, and lie would add that much misrepresentation prevailed on the subject of out-door relief. It was untrue that the Com missioners had ever prohibited out-door relief ; on the con trary, it was continued by them in all cases where the reliev ing officers saw fit to give it. An exception to this was un doubtedly made in the case of able-bodied workmen. It had been found that, in ninety-nine cases out of one hundred so far from seeking employment they avoided it ; and, therefore, it was deemed requisite that relief should be afforded to them in the workhouse only. If a party were incapable of work from disease, mal-formation, or other circumstances, out-door relief was afforded, and that principle had been extended to cases where an able-bodied man had children la bouring under some natural infirmity, such as deafness, dumbness, or blindness. In all such cases an equitable con struction was put upon the Act, and the parties were dealt with in the same manner as the aged and the infirm. Had he (Lord Brougham) not therefore a right to complain of this foul misrepresentation, when, in point of fact, it appeared that out-door relief was denied to no one who was fairly entitled to it ? He would pass over the question of medical relief, and reserve himself until the Noble Earl brought the subject forward. He had heard of no complaints from the poor themselves with respect to it. Complaints had proceeded from the medical men alone, who seemed more sensitive on 'the subject than their patients. Those who had attended to the working of the present system would admit that the poor were never better attended to than now : but it was perfectly true that the medical men could no longer draw money without doing the work for which they were paid. And he did udt hesitate to say that medical relief was much better under the new than under the old system. —( Hear, hear, hear.) He knew, also, that large and liberal allowances of meat and wine were made in all cases where there was a necessity for generous diet ; and therefore he thought the new law was a great improvement, and materially contributed to the comforts of the poor. He would now give their Lordships some other samples of charges that had been made against this measure. A gentleman (whom he would name if necessary), a Clergyman of the Established Church, had been named as baying stated a melancholy story of the mal-treatment of a poor cripple in a workhouse. The conse quence of this was that a letter was addressed to him by the Commissioners, calling upon him to say where it was that such mal-treatment had taken place, and expressing their anxiety to have the case investigated. To that letter no reply was condescended to be given--( Hear)—reasonable as was the request it contained. Earl STANHOPE here interrupted the Noble and Learned Lord, and said that the Gentleman alluded to was the Rev. Mr. Bull, the Rector of a place the name of which we aid not catch, and that he (Earl Stanhope) could show the Noble and Learned Lord the Reverend Gentleman's an swer to the letter in print.—( Hear. ) Lord BROUGHAM said that the Commissioners, then, knew nothing of such answer having appeared. Be that, however, as it might, there was another case he would men tion to their Lordships of a most gross charge against the working of this Bill. A general officer, representing a town in Lancashire, had been said to have charged a Board of Guar dians, of which he was himself too a member, with great in discretion in the exercise of their functions. They (the Guardians) wrote to the Gallant Gentleman, stating that he had been mentioned at a meeting at the Crown and Anchor Tavern as having made this charge, and begging to be in formed more particularly as to the nature of it. They natu rally considered him bound to explain the charge, and them selves equally bound to call upon him to do so. But what was the reply of the Gallant Gentleman to that application? He said that he must decline entering into any explanation upon the subject, for it would be an endless task if he were to attempt to give explanations of all his objections to the new Poor Law. But this General Officer might have at least conde scended to state his objections to the manner in which the measure was administered with reference to his own neighbour hood. With reference to many of the charges made in News papers, it was well known how Newspapers refused to state the authority upon which they were made. Their prac tice was to say that he had received the information from a correspondent on whose veracity they placed implicit confi dence, and, if more strongly pressed upon the subject, they made an apology, stating that they were very sorry, and had been misinformed.—(A laugh.) The Noble and Learned Lord then read a statement from a paper, which, he said, was thus headed, " Horrible atrocities of the new Poor-law," and it went on to state that " one Gentleman, a Clergyman, had told a neighbour that a friend had told him that two gentle men at Cambridge:had.told him—(Laughter)—that in a work house at Cambridge, where a labourer, his wife, and children were confined, they being at last worn out with confinement, or tested,' as it had been called, and thinking that it would be better to be half-starved with their liberty than in a prison, the man said that he and his wife would go out of the work house, but that on his applying to do so the answer he met with was, You can't take your wife out, for we buried her three weeks ago.'"—( Cries of hear, hear, and a laugh.) Isquiry, however, had been made with reference to this charge, and the result was, that it did not relate to Cam bridge at all—( Hear, hear)—that it was communicated to a person at Huddersfield by a person who had it from his brother, residing at a place near Huddersfield, and who had him self been in the house of the man who had so told it to his brother, and who had also said that he knew nothing at all about it—( A laugh)—that this person told it to Mr. Oastler, and Mr. Oastler told it at the Crown and Anchor. Such, then, was the sort of evidence on which this measure was to be condemned.—( Hear, hear.) The Noble and Learned Lord then read a statement from a paper of words which he said had proceeded from the lips of a Clergyman—a Clergy man, he was bound to say, not of the Established Church— ( Hear, hear, from the Right Reverend Benches)—but at all events, one who had a considerable influence in the place, of which the following are some of the leading contents : After saying that " it Magna Charta had been passed with out blood it should be re-instated without it," this Clergy man went on to say that " sooner than adopt the New Poor Law Bill, he would light up the tocsin of anarchy."— ( Great laughter.) How that was to be done he (Lord Brougham) was at a loss to know.—(A laugh.) He then pro ceeded to say that " be would plunge a dagger into the bowels of the Bill"—( Laughter—" that he would never pay any taxes towards such a Bill"--( Hear)—" that if it was to pass into a law he for one would become an outlaw"—( Hear)— " that if Parliament did not pass both Bills, then the cry should be, down with the mills.' "—( Hear.) ." If they re ceived this Bill then they must give up the Bible—( Hear) — for that the devil himself was not more opposed to Almighty God than was this Bill to the word of God."—( Hear, hear.) " In my town of Ashton," continued this Divine—and he (Lord Brougham) well knew the town of Ashton-under-Lyne, where the population was of very excitable materials, and a place, moreover, where the poor law was most unpopular, be cause it was the least known—( Hear)—" in my town of Ash ton, as soon as March comes, we have determined on the course to be pursued. Let any man dare to allow himself to become a guardian under this Bill ; it shall be eye for eye and tooth for tooth.' "—( Hear.) Why it was enough to make their Lordships' blood run cold—( Hear)---to hear language such as that proceeding from the mouth of a Minister of the Gospel—( Hear, hear)—and addressed, too, to those who knew nothing of the measure referred to except through such com munication—( Hear)—to a population over which his influence must naturally be great. Another individual had called the Commissioners " Cerberuses and Devil-Kings"—( A laugh) —and then came another, who said that " rather than disgrace himself by petitioning what was called the Parliament— ( Hear)—in favour of such a Bill he ought rather to bring the Parliament down on their knees before the meeting he was addressing, and, with a pistol in one hand and a petition in the other—( Hear, hear, hear)—compel them to repeal it." If such, then, was the language held both by priest and layman, he (Lord Brougham) must say that, while he respected the feelings of the people for not lifting up a hand to break the law—while he placed the utmost reliance on their good con duct—he was sure that it was not because there had been wanting those who had tempted them to break the law—( Hear, hear)—but because he thought the people more honest and more intelligent than those who misled them.—( Hear, hear- ) The Noble and Learned Lord then said (referring to the indi_ duals alluded to) that h e h ope d t h ese men had had their day. The charges they had made had been confuted as soon as made ; and one thing he would say in favour of the measure, that of all those scenes which five years ago had wrung the hearts of the framers of it, none were any longer heard of.— ( Cheers.) He heard no more of persons refusing to labour, because the parish allowed them three and sixpence a week for living in a state of idlen ess — (Cheers)—idleness it was called, but it was living upon three and sixpence paid by the parish out of the hard earnings of the " sweat of the brow" of the indus trious poor, who worked to support the idle in riot, pillage, and fraud. He saw no longer such instances as 240 labourers in one parish besieging the parish officers—and why . Because 9 they would not have the parish allowance without working for it.—( Hear.) Ile heard of no such cases now as that of one honest woman who, in a certain parish, was the only indivi dual who did not claim relief, until hunger and starvation compelled her to do so.—(Hear, hear.) Under the old sys riliviaelar.) Wages were separated curse was deeply felt under f t r e o rn m everything labour, ao d w m a s a o c . v s I p . it. It was destructive of man's peace, it was the parent of idleness, and opened the door to every species of profligacy and crime. The Noble Earl ( Stanhope) had told them to look at the fruits of the new system ; these were the fruits of the old.—( Hear.) The Noble Lord then concluded a most eloquent speech by demanding a cessation of those attacks and abuses which were made against the measure, which he main tained were base, foul, and injurious calumnies. " As you re- I fuse," said the Noble Lord, "the Government and the Boards the evidence to support the charges you Lring against them, at least do not proceed to pass judgment upon them when they know not of what they are accused.—( Hear.) Less than justice you cannot give, and more than justice I do not pre tend to ask."—( Cheers. ) The Earl of ST RADBR OK E rose and read papers to show that the accusation was not true that crime had increased since the passing of the Poor-law Amendment Act. Lord W YNFORD hoped it was not true that any Commis sioner had expressed himself in the terms that :lad been stated as to making workhouses as like prisons as possible. As to the statement which he had himself made on a former occasion as to the increase of crime, he could only say that he took that state from the documents of the Secretary of State, and which showed an increase of crime in the various counties of England of nine hundred. He did not approve of the meetings held in different parts of the country against th e Poor Law Bill, for although he disapproved of many provi sions of the Bill he believed that generally it produced great benefit. He thought the Government ought to put down those meetings, for the proceedings at some of them were little short of high treason. He believed the poor in the woi khouses were better off than the peer out of them. The Poor Law Act was, however, more capable of abuse than any other public Act which his Noble and Learned Friend oppo site could refer to. The Commissioners had in fact the power to repeal an Act of Parliament, which no other set of men ever had given them. The Act was in some of its provisions even worse as regarded the poor than Gilbert's Act. The able-bodied poor were not allowed to go out of the workhouse without a three hours notice, although he denied that there was any right to detain them five minutes. With respect to the bastardy clause, he thought that ought to be immediately repealed, as it l e d to the most frightful extent of infanticide. In the eastern division of the county of Sussex one out of every ten ille gitimate children born had been murdered since the in_ troduction of this law. All this was capable of proof, and ought to be inquired into. He was quite convinced the bas tardy clause ought not to be continued. He should take an other opportunity on a special motion for stating his opinion on other parts of the Bill. He had seen it stated in some of the newspapers that a family of paupers had applied to be taken into a workhouse, and that being refused they were left to the inclemency of the weather. This ought to be inquired into. If true, it ought to be exposed ; and if not true it ought to be contradicted. In another instance, people had been sent by the guardians into a workhouse where a fever raged, and the only inquiry instituted was by the guardians themselves. Lord BROUGHAM—Where was that ? Lord WYNFORD—In the union of Bridgewater. These were matters that should be strictly inquired into, for unless they were, the abuses of the Act would altogether prevent the good working of the beneficial parts of the enactment. The Earl of STRADBROKE said a few words in ex planation. gs the ag) n whoo beenai a d g ua workhouse, The Duke of RICHMOND felt himself called upon to say d a few words on a matter chiefly personal to himself, and which was no less unpleasant to him to speak of than irksome to their Lcrdships to hear. He did not generally read newspapers on this subject; but in the Times he had seen a letter published from a Mr. Rogers, of Devonshire-place, to which it was ne cessary he should make some allusion. Who Mr. Rogers was he neither knew nor cared ; but he did consider it a gross abuse on the part . of the editor of the Times to admit that letter, and follow it up with the comments he had inserted. fever . educatedsa t s hTrisalas doing odd questioned nohtgi nhtehearsehnoe had army,; hds Mr. Walter had moved for a Committee to inquire into the in working of the Poor-law Bill, and had brought forward a w oDf o u m khe a e n ro f c n hß a i dc e hr d emn Lnia b t o o u nl t enteredoas, his nitoi dsfs (otttmhhh dideee an swerhous Guardiansewaats ,the that t m b e e remonstrated h w not fear infection. The woman in her evidence stated that she had applied to him to allow her to go 'out of the house, and his answer was that she must and that the living should not go out without the dead. " I protest, on my honour," said the Noble Duke, with much warmth and energy, " I never said anything of the kind."— (Cheers.) He did not expect, notwithstanding this disavowal, that either Mr. Rogers or the editor of the Times would do him the justice to believe his denial ; but he did expect that the editor of the Times would put in the answer of another witness, namely, that of the Clergyman of the parish. He was particularly astonished at the conduct of the Noble Earl to his tenant, Mr. Barrett, a farmer of irreproachable con duct, and highly esteemed in the county of Kent. It ap peared that he sent to him to say that as he had abandoned his duty to the country, by becoming a member of the Board of Guardians, he should cease to be his tenant. He had de clared that he would never attend a meeting of Guardians him self, stigmatised those who did as inhuman, expelled them his estate, and then, turning to their Lordships, bade them observe how few petitions there were in favour of the amended law. If he (the Duke of Richmond) were a tenant of the Noble Earl, and were asked after such a warning to sign a petition in its favour, he should say, " The Bill is a good Bill; but I beg to be excused signing a petition that will expose me to such a re-action." The Noble Earl wished them to return to the days of stone breaking on the roads by gangs of vaga bonds, and of roundsmen, when the men whom they demo ralized in the gravel pits by day were found to be the active agents in the attacks on the farm-houses and thrashing mills by night, till scarce one of the latter was left in the district. He (the Duke of Richmond) declared that he knew many in stances in which out-door relief was given to idiot-children and sick wives at the present day, by Boards of Guardians, much more freely than under the old system, and if his Noble Friend would only venture to visit the workhouse in his own district he should have a pass to enable him to get out safely as soon as he pleased—( Laughter)—he would find very con vincing instances of the fact. By consulting their books he found . that while only 230 paupers had been relieved in a spe cifis d time within the workhouse 610 had received out-door relief, so that the Noble Earl should not take upon him to say that the present law was worse than the old one. He be lieved his Noble Friend was acting conscientiously in this matter, but he knew that he was also acting very injuriously. Lord COLCHESTER said that any one who knew the Noble Duke must be convinced that the charge against him was groundless. H e b e li eve d t h e Bill to b e goo d i n prin ciple, but it had not in practice been beneficial to the extent anticipated. The Bishop of CHICHESTER regretted that the Noble and Learned Lord (Lord Brougham) should have, in stating his charge against the Clergyman alluded to, 'asserted that the!, were other Clergymen who would say the same. He regretted that the Noble Duke should also have uttered the same insinuation. There were above 10,000 Clergymen, be sides Dissenting Clergymen, in connection with these national arrangements for the relief of the people liable to these unjust charges—charges which would not only distress them but the people under their ministry, who habitually sympathized with them. They had received the new Bill as law, and as such had endeavoured to give it the best effect. Lord BROUGHAM explained that he did say that other Clergymen had made similar charges, but he did not say that they had made them in similar violent and exciting language. The Marquis of BUTE said if it was intended to give the poor man a power of appeal it ought to be given him at once. The present state of things was a mockery. He was aware of a case in which the Commissioners were applied to, to take some of the children of poor labourers into the workhouse. This the Commissioners refused, and, in his opinion, most in correctly and illegally, for nothing in the amended law took away the right conferred on the poor labourer by the 35th of George 111. to claim that species of relief for his family. Viscount MELBOURNE expressed his cordial concur rence with the view taken of the subject by the Noble Lords on his right hand (Lord Brougham and the Duke of Rich mond). The Noble Earl opposite ( Earl Stanhope) claimed for the petitioners high immunities from party feelings, and prejudices, and interests; but he would put it to the House whether (after all that had been said on it) there would really be any use in pursuing the subject any further ; and thereby imposing the trouble and incurring the expense he contem plated ? Earl STANHOPE replied—He did not tell his tenant— " You shall leave the farm;" but he admonished him to take care that the odium and re-action he was likely to draw upon himself did not lead to injurious results with respect to their joint property in the land, buildings, and stock. He was charged with not having attended boards of guardians He could not do so. He was not a magistrate, as he would not be an instrument to carry into execution laws from the wisdom and justice of many of which he entirely dissented, as he did from this law. Neither had he been elected a guardian, and consequently he could not attend at any of their boards. The tumults and outrages which occurred in 1830 were the result of the distress produced by the contraction of the currency , and could not be attributed to the Poor laws. After a few words from Lord BROUGHAM and Lord Witaes - CLIFFE, The motion was put, and negatived without a division. Their Lordships then adjourned. On Sunday, Mrs. Child, a lady living at Home hill, Camberwell, whose intellects have been for some time impaired, contrived to elude the vigilance of her family, and escaped from home. She afterwards proceeded to Waterloo bridge, from the balustrades of which she precipitated herself into the river. She was observed by a waterman, who imme diately put off in a wherry from the shore, and rescued her, but owing to iser long immersion in the water, there are but faint hopes of her recovery. One night, in the early part of last week, as the trawl boats of Messrs. Wilson, of Whitehaven, were out fish ing about mid-channel, the men on board were suddenly visited by hundreds of winged voyagers, who buzzed about their cars, and seemed resolved to abide by them whilst pursuing their hardy toil. The strangers settled on the decks in hundreds, and many suffered themselves to be caught. They were larks. These blythe songsters are occasionally driven from the Scot tish to the English side of the channel in great numbers, and it is presumed that the flocks we speak of, inspired by a natu ral instinct to seek their native shore, and tempted by a fa vouring breeze, had been on their way across the Firth, when arrested in their flight by the shifting of the wind, with which they had buffetted till the shacks of night had closed upon them. Left thus forlorn amidst darkness and mists, they had been attracted by the light hoisted on the masts of the trawl boats, and had there sought a resting-place. The fishermen brought a few into Whitehaven on the following morning ; but of the hundreds who a second time ventured on their pathless way," doubtless the greater part would perish in the deep. On Saturday the 3d inst., the Rev. Hugh Williams, I. A., of Llandaff, was collated by the Rev. Richard Pritchard, B. D., by commission from the Lord Bishop of Llandaff, to the valuable vicarage of Bassaleg, near Newport, Monmouth shire, vacant by the death of the Rev. Thomas Leyson, M. A. —Bristol Gazette. THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDA , MARCH 21, 1838 PARLIAMENTARY DI VISION. BONDED CORN. From the Votes and Proceedings of the House of Commons.) TUESDAY, MARCH 20. Motion made, and Question put,—" That this House will imme diately resolve itself into a Committee, to consider of the Manufac ture of foreign Bonded Corn, under The Queen's locks, for Ex portation :"—(Colonel Seale :)—The House divided : MAJORITY—AYES, 127. Aglionby, H. A.—Cockermouth Labouchere, Right Hon. Henry— Aglionby, Major F.—Cumberland Taunton Ainsworth, P.—Bolton Liddell, Hon. IL—North Durham Bailey, J. D.—Sudbury Lister, E. Cunliffe—Bradford Timmerman, A. —Aberdeen Lushington, Charles—Ashb ur t on Baring, F. Th orn hill—Portsmouth Lynch, A. H.—Galway Barnard, E. G.—Greenwich 11 ‘ 1 .eod, R.—lnverness. Barron, H. W.—Waterford City Marsland, Henry—Stockport Bentinek, Lord G —Ly en Miles, William—Somersetshire Bernal, Ralph—Rochester Miles, Phdip John—Bristol Bowes, T —Plymouth Murray, Right Hon. J. A.—Leith Blake, W. J.—Newport O'Brien, W. S.—Limerick Co. Blakemore, Ri c h ar d—Wells O'Connell, Daniel—Dubli n Bridgman, Hewitt—Ennis Palmer, Charles Fyshe—Reading Briscoe, J. I.—Westbury Parker, John—Sheffield Broeklehurst, J.— Macclesfield Pechell, Captain—Brighton iirotherton, J.—Salford Pendarves, E. W.—W. Cornw a ll Bruges, W. H. L.—Bath Philips, Mark—Manchestor Bryan Maj. Geo.—Kilkenny Co. Roche, David — Limerick Buffo - , E.—North Staffordshire Rundle, John—Tavistock Busfield W.—Bradford Russell, Lord John — Stroud Buler, [lon. P.—Kilkenny Co Salwey, Lieut.-Col.—Ludlow Campbell, Sir John —Edinburgh Sandon, Lord—Liverpool Chalmers, Patrick—lnrerbervie Scarlett, Hon. Robert—Norwich Chapman Aaron —Whitby Seymour, Lord—Totness Childers, ' John W.—Malton Smith, Hon. R.—Wycombe Clay, W.—Tower Hamlets Smith, It. Vernon—Northampton Clive, 11. H. South Shropshire Somerville, Sir M. W.—Drogheda Codrington, Sir E.—Devonport Stansfield, NV It. C.—Huddersfield Collier, John—Plymouth Steuart, Robert —Haddington Courtenay, P.—Bridgewater Stewart, John—Lymington Curry, William—Armagh Stewart, James—Honi ton Dalmeny, Lord—Stirling Strutt, Edward—Derby Davies, Colonel—Worcester Stuart, Villiers—Waterford Co. Divett, Edward—Exeter Talbot, J. 11.—New Ross Duckworth, Samuel—Leicester Teignmouth, Lord—Marylebone Duke, Sir James—Boston Thomson, Right Hon. C. P. —Man- Duseta s C. W. D.—Flint chester Dundas , Hon. J. C.—York Thompson, Ald.—Sunderland Eliot, Lord—East Cornwall Thoroley, Thos.—Wolverhampton Evans, William—North Derby Vi,gors, N. A.—Carlow C Felton, John—Rochdale Villiers, U. P.—Wolverhampton Fielden, John—Oldham Wakley, Thomas- Finsbury Finch, F.—Walsall Walker, R.—Bury, Lancashire Dillon, Wm. D.—Linlithgow Wallace, Robert—Greenock Gladstone, W.E.—Newark-on-Trent Warburton, H.-131 idport Grattan, Henry—Meath Ward, H. G.—Sheffield Grey, Sir George—Devonport White, Andrew—Sunderland Grimsditch, T.—Macclesfield White, Luke—Longford Hall, Benjamin—Mar y lebone White, Lieut -Col. Saml.—Leitrim Hustle, Archibald—Paisley Whitmore, T. C.--Ifridgenorth Hawes. Benjamin—Lambeth Williams, William—Coventry Ilehhouse, Right Hon. Sir J. Cam Williams, W. A.—Monmouthshire Nottingham Winnington, r.r. E.— Bewdley Hobhou e, T. B.—Rochester Wood, Charles—Halifax Horsman, Edward—Coekermouth Wood, Colonel T.—Brecknockshire Hoskins, K.—Herefordshire Wood, G. W.--Kendal Howard, P. H.—Carlisle Wood, Thomas—Middlesex Hume, Joseph—Kilkenny Worsley, Lord—Lincolnshire Humphery, John—Southwark Woulfe, Mr: Serjeant—Cashel Hutton, Robert—Dublin Wynn, Right Hon. C. W.—Mont. Ingham, R. -Sou' h Shields gomeryshire Irton, Samuel—Cumberland Wyse, Thomas—Waterford James, William—Cumberland Yates, J. Ashton .Carlow J •trues, Sir W. C.—Kingston-on-Mull TELLERS. Kinnaird, Hon. A. F.—Perth Reid, Sir J. Rae—Dover Langdale, Hon .C.—Knaresboroueh Seale, Colonel—Dartmouth MINORITY. Alston, Rowland—Hertfordshire Arbuthnot, Gen.—Kincardinstehire Bane, \V.—West Norfolk Bailey, Joseph—Worcester Baker, Edward—Wilton Barneby, John—Worcestershire Barr., G. S.—Cork Co. Bell, Matthew—S. Northumberland Blair, J. Wigtonshire Brabazon, Sir William—Mayo Co. Bramston, T. %V.—Essex South —NOES, 92. (Jones, T.—Londonderry Co. Kemble, ll.—West Surrey Kirk, Peter—Carrickfergus Knatchbull, Sir E.—East Kent IKnightley, Sir C.—Northamptonsh. Litton, Edward—Coleraine Logan, Hart—West Suffbik Lygon, Hon. Colonel H. B.—West Worcestershire Mackenzie, Thomas—Ross-shire Mackenzie, W. F.—Peeblesshire Master, Colonel—Cirencester Milnes, It. M.—Pontefract Monypenny, T. G.—Rye Mordaunt, Sir John—Warwickshire Nichol', J —Cardiff Norrcys, Lord—Oxfordshire Packe, Chas. Wm.—Leicestershire Pakington, J. S.—Droitwich Palmer, George—Essex Parker, Montagu—Devon Parker, R. T.—Preston Perceval, G. J. West Surrey Polhill, Frederick—Bedford Poulter, J. S.—Shaftesbury Praed, W. M.—Aylesbury Richards, Richard—Merionethshire Rickford, W.— Aylesbury Rolleston, Col.—South Nottingham Round, C. G.—Essex Round, John—Maldon Sanderson, Richard—Colchester Sheppard, Thomas—Frome Shirley, K J.—Warwickshire Sibthorp, Colonel—Lincoln Smith, Abel—Hertfordshire Smyth, Sir G. H.—Colchester Stanley, Edward—Cumberland Stuart, Henry—Bedford Vere, Sir C. B.—East Suffolk Vivian, John Ennis—Truro innington, H. J.—Worcestershire Wedehouse, Edmund—Norfolk 7`.—Cambridgeshire or Yorke, Young, Siri n \V. .-I'.ucß Broad ley, Henry—East Yorkshire Browne, R. D.—Mayo Buller, Sir J. Yarde—Devonshire Burroughes, H. N.—East Norfolk Chine, W. L. W.—West Norfolk Codrington, C. W.—Gloucestershire Cole, Viscount—Fermanagh Conolly, Edward M.—Donegal Craig, W. G.—Edinburghshire Crimps! Joseph—Cirencester Do Horsey, S. H.—Newcastle-under, Lyme Dick, Quintm,.Maldon DowiteS - well, W.—Tewkesbury Duncombe, Hon. A.—East Retford Duticombe, Hon. W.—Yorkshire Eaton, R. J.—Cambridgeshire Egerton, W. Tatton—Cheshire Egerton, Sir P.—Cheshire Fellowes, Edw.—Huntingdonshire Fllmer, Sir E.—West Kent Fleming, John—Hampshire Forbes, William —Stirlingshire Fremantle, Sir Thomas —Bucks French, Fit astephcn—Roscommon Glynne, Sir S. 11.:—Flintshire GOre, Ormsby—Salop Gore, 0. J. R.—Carnarvonshire Grimston,Viicount—Hertfordshire Harcourt, G. S.—Bucks Heathcote, Sir W.—S. Hampshire; Henniker, Lord—East Suffolk Hillsborough, Earl of—Down Hodgson ' ltd.—Berwick-on-Tweed Holmes, Hon W.—lsle of Wight Hughes, W. B.—Carnarvon Hurt, Francis—South Derby Inglis, Sir 11. H.—Oxford University, TELLERS. Chandos, Marquis of—Bucks Rushbrooke, Colonel—West Suffolk HULL ELECTION COMMITTEE. MR. WILBERFORCE' S QUA LIFICATION. COPY OF OPINION OF SIR J. CAMPBELL. Firstly—l agree with Mr. Humphry as to the estate taken by William under his father's hill ; and, Secondly—lt seems to me to follow that as this is not an estate of freehold, William is not thereby qualified. Thirdly—l think the onus would lie on William to show that ha has a clear rental of 3001. a-year after all incumbrances are satisfied. Fourthly—l think the rental to be given in within 15 days after the petition ought to be merely a specification and parti cular of the lands contained in the qualification given in at the table when the Member takes his seat. The proper opportu nity for objecting to the addition of any other lands is, I con ceive, before the Election Committee. Fifthly—l do not think that the House would interfere with the question upon any Parliamentary application. Sixthly—l do not think that any effect ought to be given to the codicil by the Committee. Temple, Feb. 34, 1838. J. CAMPBELL. COPY OF OPINION OP MR. BRODIE. I am clearly of opinion that William, as he takes only a leasehold estate for years under the will, is not qualified by the Act 9th Anne, chap. 5, the Act requiring a fre e h o ld or copy . hold estate for a persons own life, or for some greater estate either in law or equity. As William has no qualification, it is unnecessary f o r me t o answer the other questions. Lincoln's-inn -fields, Feb. 26. P. B. BRODIE. IRELAND. cue: ddc.CYad' s t 1 e . " COLONEL KENNEDY.—The organ of the Irish Orangemen a Tory contents, amongst much virulent declamation , : and: l , h t h e e immediate din a r y d i s causep l a y th o i f so i f n g t rceenoptlilodenmae gentleman's s n e ,s r t i Kennedy'soonpcuet s furtherfor w resignationardththethan following solution of the Colonel's somewhat strange conduct: (says the Mail of Monday) is the conduct of the Irish Govern ment with respect to Captain Gleeson of Carlow notoriety. to IV e state nee d was an open and contumacious refusal to obey the orders of his superior officer. Colonel Kennedy conceives that the observance of discipline and due subor din ition requires the dismissal of this man from the The Government contents itself with a slight service. rebuke, dignified even into approbation by embracing the of fended superior officer in the same, and inflicting on the of fender a punishment infinitely less severe than on the itnot specify of fended: Captain Gleeson having been removed only to another part of the c ounty—Captain Vignoles to a distant and desolate region on the south-western coast. Colonel the Government determines onretention. No alternative Kennedy calls for the dismissal hisot the insubordinate officer_ remains but the resignation of that very head of the constabu lary force, on whose character and principles the country implicitly relied against the abuse of the arbitrary and de -pldeisumpoisnsaili,imr,atahneirt—woof spotic powers with which the force is invested ; and Captain Gleeson has the triumph of boasting in the club-rooms would d ol h o s n v e e l of Carlow (as we are authentically informed he does) that he but for his (Captain Gleeson's) superior interest d sig ;o na t t r i a ° lll n THE QUEEN V. FARRELL—In this case, which excited con siderable t,ectich) siderable interest, it being the same in which applications have has procur:,hdot b eea made to the Court of Exchequer on the part of the Crown, more than once during the last year, and opposed by the Conservative party, the jury, after being shut up for se veral hours, intimated there was no likelihood of their agree ing, and they were duly discharged. Our correspondent, who dates his communication from Clonmel, March 17, says . " I have just heard that nine are for a conviction, and the other three as steadfastly determined to acquit." This trial occupied nearly the whole day. The following deplorable event is stated by the Droit K to ce h n aN i - g e sv o o c g c e u i rr h e a d d a last un mon a t t h ld a l t ov ß el ialla, in Silesia.— Baro n long time had k ept up a criminal intercourse w‘-vitihfe,Mwho for a _. Hu ds woef, a young Ad vocate o f t h e S uper i or T r ibunal of Breslau. Mme. Kcenigs voge l was, notw i t h stan di ng her own infidelity, extremely jeal ous o f h er h us b an d. Th e Baron, who was not ignorant of this circumstance, wrote a letter and signed it with the name of a female, purporting that the person who wrote the letter would visit him at nine o'clock that evening. He took care that this letter should fall into his wife's hands, who did not scruple to open it. The Baron went into his wife's apartment, kindness whichto h was er ,orpeptoi retiring sit to his rly own, and behaved w under pretext having an e ngagement. A t ha lf -pant e i g ht the Baroness , armed with a k n if e, p l ace d h erse lf i n a w indow between the two apartme n t s . A t t h e appo i nte d h our a tall fine-looking a o d f female came up stairs, and was proceeding towards the Baron's door, as if she knew the house well, when the Baroness sprung upon her and stabbed her in the breast ; she uttered a cry and fell. The Baron and his servants hastened to the spot; and, to their surprise, found bathed in his blood M. Hundswoef, the advocate. A surgeon and an agent of police were sent for : the former declared the wound not mortal, and the latter pul the Baroness under arrest. It appeared that the Baron had thewife.The Baroness beyconfessedcriminalsentencedtenintercourse,years' matter _ tinemeat in the House of Correction at I3ialla. The Baron has o course, , MR. OwEN.-\Ve see by the Scotsman, that this well-known philanthropist is about to deliver a course of Six Lectures in the Waterloo Room, Edinburgh, illustrative of his system, The proceeds of his lectures are to be given I n e• aid of the soup-kitchens, COURT CIRCULAR. Viscount Melbourne had an audience yesterday of her Ala- jesty. The following joined the Royal circle at dinner yesterday : The Lord Steward, the Lord Chamberlain, and the Earl of Ilchester. The Countess of Durham and Lady . 11arrizA Clive have succeeded the Countess of Charlemont and the Hon. Mrs. George Campbell as the Lady in Waiting and the Bedchamber Woman in Waiting on her Majesty. Lord Byron and the Hon. Mr. C. Murray have succeeded the Earl of Fingal and Sir Frederick Stovin as the Lord and Groom in Waiting en the Queen. The Earl of Durham and Lord Hill had interviews with Lord Glenelg yesterday at the Colonial-office. Don Manuel D'Aguilar, the Spanish Minister, transacted business yesterday at the Foreign-office. The Earl of Durham's first Aide-dc-Camp, Captain Con roy, of the Coldstrea:n Guards, left town yesterday, to em bark at Portsmouth for New York. Despatches were received yesterday at the Colonial-office from the Governors of M a lt a a n d Gibraltar. FASHIONABLE INTELLIGENCE. ARRIVALS. The Duke of Dorset, in Harley -street, from Draighton House, Northamptonshire; Colonel Kennedy, from the Con tinent; Lord Crewe, from ditto ; the Count de Salis, from Paris ; the Hon. Twistleton Fiennes, in Grosvenor-street, from Brighton ; Colonel and Mrs. Montagu, at Montagu House, Portman-square, from ditto ; Lord Charles Paulet, from Stetesbourne, Stratford-upon-Avon; the Rev. John and Lady Cecil Delafield, in Bryanstone-square, from Lord Lime rick's seat, Southill-park, Berks ; the Countess de Alontalem bort, in Chapel-street, Park-lane; Right Hon. Tennyson D'Eyncourt, in Park -street, from Baynes Manor, Lincoln shire ; Major Ormsby Gore, in Portland-place, from Porking ton, Shropshire ; Rev. J. Byng, at Batt's Hotel, Dover -street, from Bedfordshire; Mr. Hambro', at ditto, from Paris. DEPARTURES. Mrs. Currie, from Batt's Hotel, Dover-street for Brighton ; Hon. and Rev. H. Powys and the Hon. Mrs. Powys, from ditto, for Wimbledon ; C. Craven, Esq., from ditto, for Dublin. Her Majesty the Queen, at the instance of the royal and noble Directors of the Ancient Concert, has been gra ciously pleased to grant her royal licence and permission that this concert shall in future be denominated " The Queen's Concert of Ancient Music." Lord Arthur Lennox, M.P., who is a Captain in the 71st regiment, will proceed to join the forces in Canada during the ensuing month. Lady Arthur Lennox, Lady Ha milton, Mrs. Daniels, and several other ladies of the officers ordered abroad, will embark at the same time. Among the earliest presentations at this year's draw ing-rooms it is said will be the Lady Adelaide Fitzclarence, eldest daughter of the Earl of Munster, now in her eighteenth year ; and the beautiful daughter of the Earl of Jersey, Lady Sarah Villiers, is also named as a debutante, although unusu ally young for a presentation. From the extreme youth of her Majesty many fair belles of distinguished families are to be in troduced into the gay world earlier than has been the case heretofore; an emancipation which will bring much spirit to the dances at Almack's. Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Capua were visited yesterday at Mivart's Hotel by his Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex. In the afternoon the Prince gave an audience to Viscount Palmerston. Among the most distinguished of their Royal Highnesses' visiters yesterday were his Grace the Duke of Wellington, Marquis and Marchioness of Salisbury, Countess of Tankerville, Count and Countess Sebastiani, Count Philip de Chabot, Count Janson, Count Ludolph, Viscountess Keith, Lord and Lady Cowley, Hon. Miss Wellesley, Baron Gersdorff, the Dean of Carlisle, &c. It is generally thought that the recent differences between the Prince and his Royal brother, the King of Na ples, have been amicably arranged. The venerable Earl of Mount Edgecumbe arrived yesterday at Mivart's Hotel in excellent health. The Speaker's Second Levee will be held on Satur day next, the 24th inst. His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge will give a grand dinner on Saturday next at Cholmondeley House. The Countess de Salis has issued cards for a splendid ball at her mansion in Carlton House -terrace, on the 3d of April. . The Earl and Countess of Rosebery will give a splendid entertainment to her Royal Highness the Duchess of Gloucester and a distinguished party, at their mansion, in Pic-. cadilly, on the 4th of next month. The friends of Mr. Maurice O'Connell in Tralee illuminated their windows on hearing the Committee had re stored him to his seat for that town. Mr. O'Connell's proposition for the settlement of the tithe que3tion is viewed by all parties in this country much more favourably than any plan hitherto suggested.— Limerick Chronicle. B. Hall, Esq., M.P., of Llanover, has received a communication from Lord John Russell, stating that her Ma jesty is graciously pleased to become the Patroness of the Society for the publication of Ancient Welch MSS. —Merlin. _ _ Lord Arundel, on Monday, took the oath in the House of Lords, prescribed by the Act 10 Gco. IV., to be taken by Peers professing the Roman Catholic religion. Lord Brougham's rival Bill to that of Lord Glenelg is entitled " An Act for putting an end to the Apprenticeship of those who were formerly Slaves in the British Colonies." The following Members paired off in favour of Colonel Scale's motion:—E. R. Rice with Colonel Trench, Lord James'Stuart with Gaily Knight, Sir J. Carnac with Colonel Powell, Sir R. Ferguson with Rice Trevor, Mr. Wrightson with Mr. Sanford. The Colonelcy of the 31st Foot has become vacant by the death of Lieut.-General Sir Edward Barnes. The regiment being in India, it is double the value of one on the home establishment. BRIGHTON, MARCH 20.—There is no foundation for the rumour that the Duke of Devonshire has offered to lend his mansion at Kemptown to the Queen Dowager, who is not expected here. The Earl of Wilton arrived express from Wilton yesterday, in consequence of the melancholy demise of his eldest daughter, Lady Mary Grey Egerton, who expired on Sunday, in her 11th year. The Marquis and Marchioness of Aylesbury and Lord Charles Bruce are expected to arrive in town, from Italy, the first weelc-in May. The Marquis and Marchioness of Abercorn intend to make the tour of Italy previous to their return home. Early in May, in company with their noble relatives the Duke and Duchess of Bedford and Lady Georgians Russell, they will leave Nice for Naples. Captain Octavius Vernon Harcourt, son of the Archbishop of York, and his bride, late Mrs. Danby, of Honiton Park, Yorkshire, have been passing the honeymoon at St. Leonard's Hill, near Windsor, the beautiful seat of the Marquis de Harcourt. MAIDSTONE, MARCH 21.—(From a Correspon dent,)—Yesterday the Mayor issued his precept for the eke. tion to take place at the Town-hall on Monday next. In the evening I attended a meeting of some of the independent free me❑ of the borough (so said the placards) at the Fountain Inn, consisting chiefly of the working classes ; when a resolu tion was drawn up, to the effect, that should any gentleman of liberal principles tender his services, the meeting pledged themselves to a man to support him by their vote and influence. The paper was signed by about 70 persons, and the Chairman said he would get 150 more in the course of the day. It is rumoured this morning that a Mr. Alford, an American merchant in the City, is coming down this evening—a gentle man whose political pretensions are in unison with the wishes of the liberal Maidstonites. Should that be so, unless some heavy arrears are paid, and the spiders commence their dirty work again, there is no doubt but that he will " make his calling and election sure." SMOKING ON THE LIVERPOOL AND MANCHES TER RAILWAY.—The Directors of this railway have passed a bye-law against smoking tobacco in or upon any coach, waggon, or other carriage used upon the railway, or in or upon any of the stations—under which bye-law, the penalty of 40s. is recoverable for every such offence. —Manchester Gnat dian. In the courst, of the argument of a case in the House of Lords on Monday, Lord Brougham asked how it was that the case had been so very long pending in the Courts in Scot land? He was answered, that a fire had happened and had destroyed all the papers, by which a very long delay had been occasioned. Lord Brougham—l hope that assistance was promptly rendered at the fire. It has been said that at a re cent fire the crowd absolutely refused assistance when it was believed that four lawyers were in the fire.—(A laugh.) The Attorney-General—l hope that assistance would have been promptly rendered if :t was known that the Attorney-Gene ral was in danger.—(Laughter.) Lord Brougham—Eh 1 Why, your name was mentioned as one of the four.--(Much laughter.) Yesterday evening, between six and seven o'clock, an accident occurred in Drury-lane to the carriage of the Duke of Brunswick, by which his Royal Highness had a narrow escape. It appears that the coachman was driving along Drury-lane at a rapid rate (the carriage pavement be ing broken up in various places by laying down gas-pipes), when the horses dashed forward, and the wheels of the car riage coming in contact with those of a waggon, the collision drove the horses into one of the holes, and both of them fell ; the carriage at the moment was overturned. His Royal Highness, observing the danger, opened the carriage door and leaped out of the chariot into the road, and fortunately escaped without any injury. The horses, with assistance, were extricated. From a statement published in the Moniteur it ap pears that in 1837 the promotions in the army amounted to 1,875—viz., 17 Generals, 48 in the staff-corps, 1,130 in the infantry, 303 in the cavalry, 209 in the artillery, 4 in the wag gon train, 94 in the engineers, and 70 in the gendarmerie. On Friday evening last a tee-total meeting was held in the Primitive Methodist Chapel, Fulstow, near Louth, the Rev. J. M. Holt, vicar, in the chair. The vicar opened the meeting, which was afterwards addressed by Messrs. North, Smith, Priestley, Miller, and others. Previous to the assem bling of the meeting, the hospitable vicar invited three or four drunkards to take tea with him, and afterwards several to supper.—Lincoln Gazette. BREAD.—The four pound loaf, best 'mad, was raised, at Edinburgh, on Monday last, to 81d. for ready money (or if paid within a month), and 9d. credit. Flour, 3s. per stone ; bran, Bd. per stone. Olt CORRESPONDENCE BE EARL OF WINCHILSEA AND MI T -.31v To THE EDITOR OF THE MORNING CHRdNtUte'rk,r SIR-May I request that you will bare the kindness to in sert in your paper of to-morrow the enclosed correspondence. I must bog to refer you to your paper of the 2d for the •ques tions and answers alluded to. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient, humble Servant, WINCHILSEA and NOTTINGHAM. .), Hill-street, March 20, 1838. 16, Pall-mall, London, March 5, 1838. "MY Loan—l cannot bring myself for one moment to doubt that your Lordship will receive this letter in the spirit of courtesy in which I write it, and that you will do me the act of justice which I respectfully solicit from your Lordship precisely as you would desire to have a similar justice done to yourself under similar circumstances, should they be appli cable to you. " The grounds, my Lord, upon which I ask this act of jus tice are these : the Lord Bishop cf Exeter is reported by the newspapers, and in particular in the Morning Post and Morning Chronicle, to have quoted you, my Lord, as his authority for attributing to me opinions and assertions the exactitude of which I mean publicly to deny ; but being con vinced either that the newspapers misunderstood the Right Rev. Prelate, or that some person has misinformed your Lord ship, I solicit at your hands a reply to the two questions which I beg leave to address to you on the subject. I think I have a right, in point of justice to such reply ; but I prefer seeking it as an act of courtesy. " The first question is, whether your Lordship ever quoted the questions and answers specified by the Right Rev. Prelate, or, I should rather say, alleged by the newspapers to have been specified by him? The second question is, if the fact be answered affirma tively, upon what authority did you, my Lord, quote them ? " In order to save your Lordship any trouble in searching for the matter which has given rise to these questions, I beg leave to enclose that portion of the Morning Chronicle of the 2d inst. which contains the supposed introductory words of the Right Rev. Prelate, and the queries and replies of the intro duction of which I complain. " I think it my duty to add. that until I read the News pipers of the 2d inst., I never heard of such questions and replies that I remember. " It is right also that I should add, that I am not inquiring into anything that was said or done in the House of Lords. I appeal solely to the newspaper statements, and my enquiries arc limited exclusively to the documents set out in these newspapers, purporting to be an examination I underwent. I solicit information merely as to whether that document was represented to your Lordship as genuine, and if so, by whom and in what manner. This is my object in writing to your Lordship. :‘ Confiding to your courtesy for as speedy a reply as may suit your perfect convenience, " I have the honour to be, my Lord, " Your very obedient humble servant, “DANIEL O'CONNELL.” " The Earl of Winchilsea." " Eastwell-park, March 6, 1838. " SIR,—I hasten to reply to your letter, whicii has just reached me. In answer to the first question which you have put, to me, whether 1 have ever quoted the questions and answers lately specified by the Bishop of Exeter in the House of Lords ?' the extracts of which you have enclosed to me, I beg to inform you that I certainly have, upon different occa sions, both in the House of Lords and elsewhere, publicly quoted them. "In answer to your second question, Upon what authority I quoted them ?' I have only to reply, that I reed them in the House of Lords out of a newspaper, in which they had been inserted, stating, at the same time, as they had received no contradiction from you, that I conceived them to be authentic ; if in this conclusion 1 find myself mistaken, I have only to add that I shall be ready to acknowledge it. " I cannot bring back to my recollection positively at what time, and in what paper, the quotatiour appeared, but I think either in the Morning Post or New Times, and that they were founded on the evidence given by you about the year 1825 on the subject of the Roman Catholic Relief Bill. " I have the honour to be, Sir, " Your obedient humble servant, " WINCHILSEA and NOTTINGHAM. " Daniel O'Connell, Esq." " 16, Pall-mall, March 17, 1838. " IZy Lord—l am bound to acknowledge thankfully the promptitude and distinctness of the reply to my two questions. " I owe it to myself, and I think I also owe it to you, my Lord, to state that although I had no doubt that the pretended extract of any evidence which you found in the newspapers mentioned by your Lordship was a mere fabrication by the writers of those newspapers; yet I have taken the trouble of reading over the entire of my evidence before both Houses of Parliament, and I now solemnly pledge myself that the pas sage quoted by you is totally unfounded, and that no evidence of mine could warrant the publication of that passage as ge.. nuine. You have, therefore, Ido assure you, my Lord, been deceived by the newspapers you quote ; and perhaps you would permit me to say that my leaving the deception uncontradicted would be no proof of its truth, as I have little inclination, and less time, to contradict the multitudinous false charges daily published in the newspapers against me. " i readily offer your Lordship to authenticate or to con tradict any matter attributed to me of which you should desire to make public use, if you give yourself the trouble of a pre vious inquiry from rne. " Again, my Lord, thanking you for your satisfactory reply, I have the honour to be, my Lord, your very obedient humble servant, " DANIEL O'CONNEL. " The Earl of Winchilsea." " 2, Hill-street, March 19, 1838. " SIR-I was on the point of writing to you ►wen your letter reached me, to inform you that after a considerable s-areli, I have discovered that the extracts of evidence reported to hive been given by you before the Parliamentary Committee in 1825, were inserted in the Standard newspaper of the sth of February, 1833, accompanying the leading article of that day. " I have since carefully perused the evidence given by you before the Committees of both Houses in that year, and I am bound in justice to you to state, that the opinions attributed to you in the extracts referred to, are not in any way borne out by the sentiments you then expressed. " I have only to express to you my sincere regret that I have in any way been instrumental in misrepresenting any part of the evidence which you gave before the Committee in 1825. " I shall be ready to make you the only reparation in my power, by placing you right before the public on this point, in any way most gratifying to your own feelings, either by contradicting it in my place in the [louse of Lords, or by publishing the correspondence Ns hid' has passed be tween us. " I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, " WINCHILSEA and NOTTINGHAM. " Daniel O'Connell, Esq." " 16, Pall-mall, March 19, 1838. " Lotto,--I am bound to say, and I say it cheerfully, that nothing can be more candid or handsome than your Lord ship's conduct on the subject of the fictitious extract from my evidence in 1825. I thtrefore accept your offer of the publi cation of our correspondence on the subject. " I cannot conclude without once more tendering to your Lordship the expression of my thankfulness. " I have the honour to be, my Lord, your obedient bumble servant, " DANIEL O'CONNELL. " The Earl of Winebilsea." Count d'Aglie is expected in town from the Conti nent to resume leis diplomatic functions at the Court of St. James's. THE PETITION FOR A CHARTER OF INCOR PORATIoN FOR MANCHESTER.—AS we announced on Satur day, signatures to the petition to the Privy Council for a Charter of Incorporation for the borough of Manchester were attached up to two o'clock on that day, when the sheets were collected and united, forming, with two columns of sig natures and two of residences on each sheet, a petition nearly one hundred yards in length, and containing " eleven thousand eight hundred and thirty-one" signatures. The gentlemen appointed as a deputation to present the petition were Mr. William Neild, the late senior constable of Manchester, and who would now have been the boroughreevo but for his pe remptory refusal to accept the ()nice, and Mr. Richard Cob den. The latter gentleman proceeded to London by railway on Saturday evening, and he was joined in town by Mr. Neild on Monday evening. We believe the petition was signed in London by George William Wood, Esq., M. P. ; Richard Potter, Esq., M. P. ; and Mark Philips, Esq., M. P. ; and that it was subsequently placed in the Privy Council Office, there being some little doubt as to the day when the next Privy Council would be held. The petition is nearly ono hundred yards in length, and is, we should suppose, the most numerously signed, considered in relation to the population, of any that has yet been presented to the Privy Council, for a Charter of Incorporation. That from Birmingham was Signed by about 4,400 individuals, out of a population of pro bably upwards of 150,000 ; in 1831 it was under 147,000, while the petition from Manchester is signed by 11,831 per sons, out of a population of probably 200,000 ; for in 1831, it was exactly 187,022. The population of the borough of Bir mingham is to that of the borough of Manchester, as 3 to 4, while the signatures to the petition from Birmingham were, in proportion to those attached to the Manchester petition, only as 1 to Since then, we have hoard that the Birmingham petition was subsequently augmented in numbers, and ulti mately reached nearly 8,000 signatures. The Parliamentary borough of Manchester comprises the following townships ; and wo have attached the total population of each in 1831, and the total male population of each, including childrea:— Total Males. Manchester Chorlton-on-Medlock • . 20,569 9,304 Hulme Ardwick Newton 4,377 2,112 Cheatham 4,025 1,820 Harpurhey Beswick 166 Bradford Totals Deducting children, and those who neither occupy houses nor pay rates within the borough, it will be tolerably obvious, that the petition from the householders and ratepayers cf Manches ter has been signed by a considerable majority of those classes of the community.—Manchester Guardian. ig - v Iv, ( 41 .., .5. 5C , 1 7. ir 1 .t.1.4%;/.::1.,\:•; it